Spring has sprung in WI! Not really, but at least the snow is melting (let's ignore the fact that they are calling for a possibility of 4 more inches tomorrow). Either way, I'm not going to let the cold, white stuff, or muddy slush get me down this magical March 20th day of Spring!We recently returned from 5 glorious days in sunny Arizona, so every time I start to get down I look at my tan lines, close my eyes and imagine the warm sun warming my frigid body. Even though the weather isn't cooperating with the seasonal equinox, my body doesn't have to know that - bring on the springtime foods! Currently in my 21st week of pregnancy, I'm longing for light meals that help keep me energized without causing me to feel so full that I can't move - or breathe. This risotto has a beautiful mix of some of my favorite springtime flavors that really lighten up this otherwise rich dish.

In a small saucepan, pour broth and let simmer until warm. In a separate saucepan put asparagus pieces with an inch of water. Let simmer/steam until tender.In a larger saucepan or pot melt the butter and EVOO. Add in the onion and cook until transparent. Add in the rice and continue to stir for a minute. Slowly add in the wine and cook until the alcohol burns off, about 2-3 minutes. Add in mushrooms and then begin to slowly add in the broth - 1 ladle at a time. Add 1 ladle, stir for 1-2 minutes, add another ladle, stir for 1-2 minutes and repeat until all of the broth is gone. Your rice should be creamy. Add in the parmesan cheese, salt and pepper to taste and then fold in the asparagus and tomato. Garnish with scallions. Serve hot or room temperature.

Spring is really trying to make it's way to the Midwest. The temperatures are slowly starting to warm up (if you call 30's warm) and the sun is shining more than it's been hiding. I have more energy too, which means I'm able to go out and stay up until at least 10:30 now. It also means I'm up for entertaining, something I hadn't realized I missed so much!Recently I had my Clean Eating Challenge team over for some educational classes on metabolism and essential oils. It was a lovely evening, made complete by delicious food. One of my favorite go-to recipes is Grilled Polenta with pesto and sundried tomatoes. Prepackaged polenta is easy to find and provides a ton of efficiency in the kitchen! You can find prepackaged polenta at just about any local grocer.

*source: thekitchn.com

I was given this recipe when I was a purely elizabeth ambassador, and I use it so frequently as it is super easy and extremely flavorful!

I absolutely love the taste of grilled fruit. I love how the natural sugars carmelize and turn into a beautiful golden char, and the smoky flavor that lingers even after you've chewed and swallowed each delicious bite. I'm a huge fan of grilled pineapple, but didn't have any on hand this week. I did have peaches, which were amazing. Just before our beef skewers were done cooking I sliced my peaches in half, removed the pit and placed them on the open flame. After a few minutes I flipped them and let them get grill marks on the other side. I gave them a rough chop and tossed them with fresh strawberries. No bowl of fruit is complete (if it's being eaten for desssert, that is) without a yummy sauce to pull it all together. I found this sauce on Green Kitchen Stories last year when I was making my birthday cake. I decided it would be delicious over the grilled fruit, and it did not disappoint.

About two years ago I gave up drinking coffee and soda. Whenever I would crave either, I would drink a huge glass of water and carry about my day. I found that it was actually very simple, and decided not to stop there. I no longer drink milk (for other reasons saved for another post), juice (unless it's fresh squeezed) or any other sugary beverage. I do still drink wine and beer, but on a daily basis I drink tea or bone broth in the morning and then water throughout the remainder of the day.Whenever I'm working with someone that needs to drink more water, I encourage them to add flavors to it. No, not those gross crystal light packets - real flavor, from real food. You'd be amazed at what a cucumber or lime can do to a glass of water! While plain ol' H2O doesn't bother me, it is nice and refreshing to add citrus to it in the warm summer months.

While you can mix and match whatever fruit you have on hand, I find that citrus produces the most refreshing flavors. This time I had oranges, lemons and limes on hand. I also had cucumbers and some fresh herbs. Citrus helps to detoxify, so adding it to your water is a great way to stay hydrated while flushing out your lymphatic system.Citrus Watermakes 6 servings2 oranges2 lemons2 limes1 cucumber1 handful of fresh basilfresh, purified waterPeel your fruit and cucumber. Slice each piece of fruit into 6 slices. Slice the cucumber into even slices. Put 2 slices each of the orange, lemon and lime, an even amount of cucumber slices and a few basil leaves into a mason jar. Fill with purified water and refrigerate overnight to a week.I found that once I drank the water, I could usually fill it up throughtout the day (with the same fruit), shake the water a little and keep drinking. I used the soaked fruit, cucumber and basil the next morning in my smoothie (don't throw it away!)

You could easily use berries or pineapple in your water too. I would stay away from bananas though, as they don't hold water very well (;Do you have trouble drinking enough water?Enjoy!XoXo,Nicole

Yesterday was my husband's birthday. Normally I cook at home for his birthday, and he treats me to a night of no cooking for mine. Our CSA recently started, and we've been getting quite a bit of Hakurei turnips. Turnips look similar to radishes, but have a much more mild taste. They can be eaten raw or cooked, and the greens are excellent to eat too. Turnips are a fantastic source of many minerals and nutrients, such as calcium, vitamin C, phosphorous and potassium.

Since we had another bunch I decided to add them to the sweet potato hash I was making to eat with our fish. They added a wonderful texture, and I ended up with this delicious recipe!Sweet Potato and Turnip Hashserves 41 bunch turnips, cleaned and trimmed1 sweet potato, peeled 1 celery stalk1/2 red onion, minced2 cloves garlic, mincedolive oil1/2 t cinnamonsalt & pepper to tasteChop the turnips, sweet potato and celery into small, uniform pieces.

Add 2 T olive oil to a cast iron skillet (or similar frying pan) over medium high heat. Meanwhile, add all of your veggies to a bowl and toss with salt, pepper and cinnamon. I do this before adding to my pan so that everything is mixed together nicely and I don't have to do a lot of flipping and mixing in my skillet. I don't know about you, but I'm messy and end up with tons of food all over my stovetop. But, do as you wish.I let it sit for about 5 minutes before I flipped the vegetables around. You want the veggies to get soft, but also to get a nice carmelized color and crust on them.

I flipped every 5 minutes or so, and after 20 mintues my hash was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Each time you flip, use your spatula to push the veggies down onto the pan. You almost have to smoosh them (not too hard though, you're making a hash - not a mash!)Serve with your favorite main dish (although I seriously could have eaten a whole bowl of just this!) I also think this would be excellent as a breakfast, with a fried egg on top!

Earlier this week I posted a cookie recipe. Since no cookie is good without a cold glass of milk, I decided to do a quick post on how to make your own milk. If you're like me and don't drink cow's milk, nut milks are a great alternative. The problem with many is that they are expensive and often contain ingredients that you don't want to ingest.Making your own nut milk is super easy. As long as you have a blender, you can make nut milk.Start by soaking 1 cup of your favorite nuts (I prefer almonds or cashews) in filtered water.

You're going to want to let the nuts soak for about 8 hours. I usually soak them overnight, or first thing in the morning so they can sit while I'm at work all day. When you're ready, drain the water from the nuts and add them to a high speed blender. Add 4 cups of fresh, filtered water to the blender (if you find that the milk tastes too watery, you can lessen this to 3 cups of water, it really is a matter of personal preference).

Blend on high for 1-2 minutes until your mixture gets frothy.

After it's well blended, use a milk bag (if making almond milk) to strain into a glass container. If you're making cashew milk, you don't need to strain it. *Note: save the almond pulp for a smoothie!Refrigerate for a week to a week and a half.

Easy as pie, and much less expensive too. Make sure to buy your raw nuts in the bulk section of the grocery store to save even more money!Here are some variations for you to experiment with too:- add a splash of pure vanilla extract or a whole vanilla bean (cut up first) to the blender for vanilla flavor- soak 6-10 pitted dates in water (separate from your nuts) and add those to the blender for a sweeter milk- add cacao powder to the blender for a chocolatey versionHave fun with it and see what works best for you!Enjoy,XoXo,Nicole

People who know me well know that I don't really like to bake. Every once and awhile I'll get the itch, and around the holidays I'll bake a couple of obligatory cookies, but it's not really my thing. I'd rather be cooking, experimenting with new flavors and creating meals that fill people up and make them happy.

This past weekend I had been feeling under the weather. I was able to get a thousand loads of laundry done, plant my herb garden and flowers and relax a bit though. I promised I wasn't going to let my sore throat stop me from tackling my to-do list. Come Monday I was feeling better, but the weather was cold and rainy. I was craving something sweet (another reason I don't bake) so I decided to make these cookies. It ended up with an afternoon of baking and prepping some other "basics" that I often have on hand in my fridge. The first time I made these cookies I knew they would be a go-to recipe for years to come. They truly are super easy and come out beautifully. I love chewy cookies, and these hit the spot every time.

Almond Meal Cookies with Coconut and Cacao Nibsaltered slightly from The Sprouted Kitchenmakes 20 cookies1 1/4 c almond meal1/4 c cacao nibs1/2 c unsweetened shredded coconut1/2 t baking powder1/4 t sea salt1/3 c coconut palm sugar1 t cinnamon1/4 c dried cranberries, optional1 egg3 T coconut oil, melted1/2 t pure vanilla extractIn a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients to the cranberries, if you are using them. In another bowl, beat or whisk the egg very well until it is a uniform color and doubles in volume. Whisk in the coconut oil and vanilla extract. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Put the bowl in the fridge and chill for 30 minutes.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Using your hands, roll the chilled dough into 1 inch balls and place on baking sheet. Give them a gentle press on the tops to flatten just a bit. Bake until the edges just begin to brown, 7- 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool before serving.

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of attending the first Milwaukee Foodie Fitness Fete, a bloger event hosted by Sheila Wordell over at SMW RoadRunner. The attendees were, you guessed it, fitness bloggers who also love food! You're probably wondering how I got invited to that, since my blog is primarily food related. I *may* have accidentally invited myself to the event - through a Facebook miscommunication, but am I sure glad I did! Not only did I invite myself, but I ended up doing a cooking demonstration too! I consider myself one of the food bloggers that also loves fitness.....we all spread the love in our own way!

Here I am demonstrating my Southwestern Veggie Soup!I wasn't the only non-runner; however, I must say that their passion for running definitely inspired me. I've been running a couple times a week since the event, and have signed up for more 5K races too. I met so many wonderful people, ate way too much food and walked away feeling energized and blessed to be a part of such a fabulous community of people. Within hours we were all following each other on Twitter, became Facebook friends and started reading each others blogs. It's amazing what social media can do for relationships. Last Monday, two of my new foodies fitness blogger friends were in Boston to run the marathon. Upon hearing the tragic news of last week's events, we were all reaching out to see if anyone had heard from either of them. The whole evening there were messages of love and concern - and while everyone has their own connections within the group - we all had felt the anxiety of waiting. Wondering. Praying. Until both new friends made it safely home.The blogger event was so successful that we decided we must do it again, and will be joining forces this summer to create indulgent makeovers. Until then, I'll leave you with some photos from the evening as well as links to everyone's blogs. A HUGE thank you to the Mandel Group, who offered their beautiful venue for the event, and to Ly Nguyen of Capture Life Moments for the fabulous photographs!

I'm not sure where you are, but it's still cold here. We had a little taste of spring, and then as if we pissed off Mother Nature by getting too over-eager or something, she took it away and began threatening snow. Whatever. I'm over it.Actually, I'm not. I'm ready to start begging, scratch that, pleading for warmer weather.Until then, I shall continue to make stew.

And drink wine.This recipe seems like a cold weather dish, but the tender tuna and lemon juice really gave it a fresh taste. I could see myself making this on a rainy summer night. The recipe is adapted from a new cookbook I picked up, True Food by Dr. Andrew Weil. Those of you who know me know I adore him - so when we traveled to Arizona a few weeks ago, we went to one of his restaurants - also named True Food Kitchen. Delish. Amazing. To die for...OK, you get it. I immediately purchased the cookbook and began experimenting. Here is my take on his Tomato-Braised Tuna...Tomato-Braised Tunaadapted from True Food3 T olive oil1 small onion, diced1 small fennel bulb, diced2 garlic cloves, minced1 jalepeno, minced and de-seeded1/2 c red wine1/8 t saffron1 28 oz can crushed tomatoeslarge handful of red potatoes, cubed2 c water2 filets of ahi tuna, cut into cubes1/2 c pitted green olives, halved2 T capersjuice from half a lemonzest from lemonsalt & pepper to tasteIn a large pot, heat olive oil on medium-high heat. Add the onion and fennel and saute until it starts to tenderize. Add the garlic and jalepeno. Add some salt and pepper along the way to season. Add the wine and saffron and let the alcohol burn off - about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, potatoes and 2 c water. Bring to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are almost done (mine took about 15 minutes). Add in the tuna, olives and capers. Turn off the heat and let the tuna cook while the heat is off. Squirt in some lemon juice and zest before you dish.

I'll also add in a couple pictures from Arizona. It was a beautiful vacation, sunny days and lots of baseball! We managed to find some time to hike Papago. Given the conditions here in Wisconsin, I'd take 95 and sunny back anytime now!

Back to the recipe....if you don't like tuna, you can certainly make this with a whitefish or even chicken. However, I strongly suggest you make it with the tuna. I mean, c'mon....does this not look divine?

I have been on the road a lot lately, traveling from Arizona to Washington, D.C./Virginia to Iowa. Coming home this week felt wonderful - especially after a week of eating restaurant food. Even after a week of light eating and cooking fresh food at home, the Easter holiday did me in. It's hard eating at other people's houses when you're used to eating a certain way. While the meal was delicious in every way, I notice immediately when my body needs a break. While I would love to say that I drink a fresh green smoothie every morning, I'd be lying. I don't get around to them as often as I'd like, but after a lot of heavy foods it's my go-to. A green juice or smoothie in the morning helps keep up my energy levels up and aids in my digestion - both of which are great after feeling weighed down by consecutive nights of heavy meals.

I like to play around with what I add to my juices/smoothies. Each time really depends on what I have on hand. This was my most recent juice, and it was delicious!Green Citrus Breakfast Juice1 1/2 c coconut water1 handful of kale, stems removed1/2 banana, fresh or frozen2 dates, pitted1 T coconut oil1 handful fresh or frozen cranberries1 orange, peeled1 T Nordic Superfood, or your favorite superfood powder1 handful of ice, if you prefer more of a smoothie consistencyPlace all ingredients, in order, in a high speed blender. Blend until smooth.

I get a lot of people that ask me where the protein is, or how this can last me until lunch. I find that often times we eat lunch because the clock says noon. This juice, many juices/smoothies for that matter, can last me many hours. If you're listening to your body - really listening to it - you'll find that you might not be as hungry as you think you are. Don't get me wrong if you need the protein, throw in a bit of almond butter or a protein powder, but don't fall into this trap of feeling as though you need a ton of protein at every meal in order to stay balanced.After eating heavy meals or when you're feeling full or irregular, the enzymes in veggies and greens can aid in digestion. While the verdict is still out on cranberries, they are said to contain acids that help to break down fatty foods. Either way, this fabulous juice left me feeling lighter and more alert!What is your favorite green juice or smoothie?XoXo - Be Well,Nicole